"Xiao Feng!! Help me tie him up!"
"Okay!!"
[0.35, 0.34, 0.33...]
Under the sun with an inaccurate countdown, the boys in mid-air once again raised their items.
[It’s useless... Can they really recover in such a short time?? The main system has already weakened the item data...]
[Sigh... There’s no choice, they can only try something, better than just waiting to die.]
[Maybe... Jiang Yan really gave them a buff??]
[Same here?? Then I’d rather believe that the main system softened up, just like this inaccurate countdown.]
[0.09, 0.08, 0.07...]
Everything in the town began to blur and spread out like a watercolor painting soaked in water...
[0.05, 0.04, 0.03...]
[It’s over.]
Players in the bullet chat began spamming white flowers, as if mourning for the players and NPCs in the instance.
Meanwhile, in the instance, Jian Hou stared at the boundless void, his eyes filled with despair. The father and son with colorful braids gritted their teeth, tightly embracing each other.
Yu Jia and Lu Sha exchanged a glance. Compared to the desperate new players, their eyes were resolute and calm.
It seemed they had already prepared for this day.
After all, they had long prepared to die in the game.
“At least we completed the guild mission.” Yu Jia shrugged with a smile at Lu Sha.
He made a 'finger gun' gesture, wishing he had a cigarette right now, “Kill Jiang Yan.”
Lu Sha smiled slightly.
The two of them watched everything around them fade, calmly facing the approaching death.
“Ding!”
[Item: Medical Bandage]
“Ding!”
[Item: Divine Staff]
“Ding!”
[Item: Adam's Ring]
The white bandages tightly wrapped around the severely decaying Ma Bin and in the mid-air of the watercolor-like town, a new crescent moon appeared again.
“Boom--!!”
“Ah—!!”
The immense light made everyone close their eyes. Ma Bin let out a painful scream that echoed through the skies!!
(Reminder, Ma Bin is the name of the buzzcut guy :)
When the light dissipated, both the giant rat and Ma Bin completely vanished. The fountain in the center of the town began to bubble with crystal-clear water, and everything returned to the peaceful scene it was when they first arrived.
Meanwhile, the countdown of the sun in the sky stopped.
[... 0.01]
A deathly silence.
No one knew how much time had passed, but then they heard a "thud" as something fell to the ground.
Everyone looked in confusion.
It was a handsome young man in a black robe, with black hair and blue eyes. At this time, beside him were two severed arms.
That was Jiang Yan.
And the two severed arms beside him belonged to his husband, who had been dismembered on their wedding night.
“Ugh... Pain.”
Jiang Yan rubbed his waist, slightly complaining.
Cao Youfeng glanced at Jiang Yan from a distance, blinking and dazed saying,“Did... we... survive?”
The people inside and outside the instance finally snapped back to reality.
[What the hell?!]
[No way?!]
[They can survive this?! Damn!! Impressive!]
[No way?? I can’t believe it!]
“Wow—! Yan Yan!!!”
Jian Hou immediately rushed toward Jiang Yan, starting to hug him and cry out, “We survived!!!”
The new players also quickly embraced and began crying.
“Dad!! Mmm, mmm...”
“It’s okay... it’s okay...”
“Geng Hui... Geng Hui! Are you alright?!”
“...”
Ding!
[Congratulations to the player for completing the instance side mission: Jiekhe Town!]
Ding!
[Instance: "The Bloody Bride of the Giant Clan," Instance progress: 35%]
[Total number of players: 10, current survivors: 8]
[Number of real NPCs: 4, currently untainted NPCs: 41]
Jiekhe led everyone to the entrance of the town, and their coachman, who had somehow arrived at the nearby green hillside filled with beautiful wildflowers, was waiting for them.
“Goodbye, everyone! Hope to see you again next time!” Jiekhe said with a smile.
The group smiled awkwardly, “Thank you!”
“Haha, no need for that.”
“Farewell...”
After bidding farewell, everyone headed towards the hillside. Jiang Yan held one of his own severed arms, while Jian Hou carried the other one.
It was strange; clearly, no one except Jiang Yan could carry the arm inside the town, but now Jian Hou was easily able to carry it.
Only when they returned to the spacious and luxurious carriage did everyone let out a long breath.
“Finally... it’s over!”
Jian Hou leaned against Jiang Yan’s shoulder as he sat in the carriage seat, his hat slipping off his head and falling to the side.
Jiang Yan picked up the hat and glanced at it.
His hat, along with the other players’ hats, had long since disappeared during the chaos earlier, no one knew where.
“Speaking of which... this thing doesn’t seem to serve much purpose?” Jian Hou looked at the hat in Jiang Yan’s hand and said, “That guy must have been messing with us! He said if the hat fell off, we would be eaten by a rat, but everyone’s hats fell off, and no rats came!”
“What difference does it make whether we are eaten or not? My life almost ended.”
Cao Youfeng, still shaken, leaned against Tao Shi.
It wasn’t just him; all the other players were still on edge.
Especially the new players, who were huddled together. Geng Hui’s face was still as pale as a corpse, her eyes vacant, staring dully at her toes.
The moment the carriage began moving, Jiekhe’s voice echoed from afar:
“Remember me, my friends!”
Tao Shi quickly opened the carriage window, and everyone looked towards the town.
From the distant entrance of the town at the base of the hillside, it wasn’t just Jiekhe standing there. A tall figure stood beside him, but they were too far away to make out who it was.
“Remember me! Come find me to play sometime!”
Jiekhe took off his hat and waved it towards the crowd.
Seeing this, Jian Hou said, “See, I told you the hat…”
Before he could finish his sentence, a massive rat suddenly leaped out from the town, swallowing Jiekhe whole in an instant...
"..."
Tao Shi silently closed the carriage window. Everyone was speechless, and the carriage slowly headed toward the direction of the castle.
—
When they returned to the castle, a group of giants and elves stood at the entrance to greet them.
Seeing Jiang Yan and Jian Hou holding the severed arms, the giant nobles were overjoyed, "Your Highness... you’ve brought both arms back!"
Jiang Yan: "...I’ve brought them back..."
Damn it! Hell.
Cang Rou, the Queen of the Elves flapped her wings and flew toward Jiang Yan. She gently cupped his face and said, "Oh!! My dear child! I knew you could do it!"
Jiang Yan obediently bowed to her.
"I believe you all need to go back to your rooms to rest. I will knock on your doors for dinner," she said.
A tall, beautiful maid, dressed in a maid outfit and over two meters tall, bowed and respectfully led everyone to their rooms.
As the sun gradually sank in the west, the orange glow bathed the castle’s arched roof, making it look like a delicious pastry.
—
In the "Giant Race's Bloody Bride" dungeon, the players had just narrowly escaped death and were now enjoying a brief moment of peace. However, outside the dungeon, the forums and various guilds exploded with activity!
#Jiang Yan's Divine Descent
#Jiang Yan Buffs Players
#Jiang Yan Bug
#Jiang Yan's Identity
#Is Jiang Yan the illegitimate child of the Supreme God, or a virus accidentally created by the main system?
—
The entire forum’s hot topics were dominated by the two words "Jiang Yan."
Every trending post was discussing Jiang Yan’s identity.
[This really doesn’t make sense!! What exactly is Jiang Yan?!]
[So… in the end, it was really Jiang Yan who gave Tao Da and the others the buffs?? Why can he give buffs? He didn’t even get any new items!]
[His 'Lost Rose,' which can break out of the dungeon script for five minutes, is already insanely overpowered! How is he now able to give buffs?? Are you kidding me?!]
[Help… a group of high-level players and high-level NPCs are trapped in an S+ dungeon, with the main system deliberately weakening both their items and attributes, facing a dead end and imminent total defeat. And in the end, it's a C-level NPC with a rank under 50 in the overall server ranking who turns the tide?? Are you writing wish fulfillment fiction?!]
[So! Why can he give buffs to players? What’s going on?? Can anyone explain?? Is the system not going to provide a reasonable explanation?]
[What exactly is Jiang Yan… I’m really curious now. What is he?]
[I can now really understand why the Puppet Workshop and Valen Church are trying to kill him… This guy must not be left alive!]
[What is he really? This can’t just be explained by the main system’s favoritism]
[Yeah… although, I feel like this shouldn’t be a secret anymore, it seems like all four major guilds have issued announcements…]
[What announcement? What announcement? Noobs like me can’t even get into the four major guilds, please tell me!]
---
[Dawn Guild] Headquarters.
Black Spade K, dressed in a sharp black suit and wearing a blue shark cartoon headgear, sat on the sofa in his lounge, his long legs crossed as he leisurely sipped on a cup of milk tea, watching the replay of Jiang Yan’s live broadcast.
Various comments were popping up rapidly on the screen.
Not sure which one caught his attention, he picked up the remote and hit the pause button. Then, he grabbed another remote and pressed a button.
Soon, the mechanical door of the lounge opened with a soft sound, and a handsome, blond man in a white suit appeared in the doorway.
"Boss, did you call for me?" the blonde man asked.
The light from the giant screen in front of Black Spade K illuminated the blonde man's face, making him look like a prince from a fairy tale.
Black Spade K lazily tapped the armrest of the sofa, raised his chin slightly, and said, "Take a look at this."
The blonde man turned his head, and saw on the huge holographic display, Jiang Yan was peacefully asleep, surrounded by a large group of people.
The blonde man’s eyes widened in an instant. "Jiang Yan... and his husband? So many?? The main system is really going this far now?!"
Black Spade K remained silent. He placed his milk tea gently on the coffee table in front of him, making a soft sound.
The blonde man said, "...Alright, I understand. This time, he really did go too far."
Black Spade K’s voice grew cold, "Not just this time!"
The blonde man: "...?"
Black Spade K interlocked his fingers and rested his hands on his lap, staring at the picture on the screen. He spoke with a bitter tone, "Back when he said he was going to personally appear before Jiang Yan, I knew there would be a problem! He said he could control the situation, yet... this is his idea of control?!"
The blonde man shrugged, "We can't stop him! The Lord God can’t stop him either."
"That's because the Lord God never intended to stop him!" Black Spade K said.
"Have you communicated with the Lord God?"
The blonde man walked to the sofa and sat down beside Black Spade K.
"I've communicated. I told you something would go wrong sooner or later!" Black Spade K said.
"So... Jiang Yan is...?"
"No."
Before the blonde man could finish his sentence, Black Spade K interrupted him directly.
"Then why?" the blonde man asked, confused. "If Jiang Yan isn't... then why does the Lord God favor him so much? The [Divine System], that's a favor even you haven't received."
"I don't need that kind of thing, and I don't like it!" Black Spade K replied nonchalantly. "My wish has always been to leave this game, along with... with him."
The blonde man: "..."
"I heard that the other day you had a big argument with the Best Actor at our guild's base," the blonde man said.
Black Spade K sighed deeply. "He didn't fully understand the situation, and I couldn't tell him."
"Just like you can't tell us?" the blonde man asked.
Black Spade K: "..."
"Why?" the blonde man asked again, still confused. "What exactly is Jiang Yan's identity? Is his identity just that of the lover?"
"Now, that one's situation couldn't be worse! Yet, the Lord God and the main system are focused on Jiang Yan, this mere slightly clever real NPC? I don't understand why they are doing this," the blonde man said.
Black Spade K swayed his legs, feeling somewhat melancholic. "You don't need to understand, it won't be long... Soon, you'll know the end of this game, and our end."
The blonde man: "..."
After a moment of silence, the blonde man spoke again: "So, did you call me here for what? To watch Jiang Yan get intimate with his ex-husband?"
"No."
Black Spade K casually picked up a red laser pen and circled several comments that had sparked a discussion about Jiang Yan and his ex-husband's peculiar relationship.
"Who are these people?" Black Spade K asked. "I don't think I've seen them before."
The blonde man casually opened the screen on his wristwatch.
A blue light screen projected out from the watch, leaving a holographic display in the air.
However, only the blonde man could see the contents of the screen; others could only see the dense blue data chains, which came from the main system.
The blonde man tapped on the screen a few times, then said to Black Spade K: "They are a few new players from [Yin Yang Realm]."
"[Yin Yang Realm]..." Black Spade K felt a headache coming on.
The blonde man looked at the comments on the screen and said, "New players wouldn't know so much about Jiang Yan unless they specifically searched for it. Moreover, it's obvious they're intentionally guiding public opinion. This can only mean [Yin Yang Realm] guild issued a task related to this."
"..." Black Spade K.
"But... Isn't [Yin Yang Realm] supposed to be on our side? Why..."
The blonde man hesitated and turned to look at the guild leader next to him. At that moment, Black Spade K had tilted his head back on the sofa, looking like a lifeless fish.
The blonde man said, "...Boss, pull yourself together."
Black Spade K suddenly sat up, gripping the blonde man's shoulders with both hands. His smile was almost mocking, his voice trembling slightly as he said, "If you think it's so easy, should I announce that I'm the one pulling all the strings? Let everyone turn their attention to me, and Jiang Yan can just escape? What do you think? Isn't this a brilliant idea?"
"That's a terrible idea! Boss, please pull yourself together!!"
"..."
—
Jiang Yan returned to the wedding room he shared with Yu Xiu, placing his arms on one side of the bed. He then entered the bathroom to take a shower, and after changing into a pure white bathrobe, he sank into the large, soft velvet bed, falling into a deep sleep.
"Knock knock knock."
"Yan Yan? Are you awake?"
Jiang Yan was woken by a knocking sound.
He wasn’t sure how long he had slept, but when he opened his eyes while curled up in the blanket, the sky outside the grand arched, carved floor-to-ceiling windows had already turned into a tranquil deep blue. A slender crescent moon hung over the ruined tower of the castle, and countless stars filled the entire night sky.
"Knock knock knock."
"Yan Yan?? Still asleep?"
The voice outside was from Jian Hou.
Jiang Yan lazily stretched, rolled around in the large bed, buried his head in the pillow, and mumbled,
"I'm awake, you can come in."
Creak.
Jian Hou pushed the door open.
As soon as he entered, he saw a large, pure white bed with a handsome young man with black hair, lying lazily and peacefully, his long arms outstretched, looking incomplete in some way.
Well, it was strangely, yet inexplicably, beautiful.
Jian Hou’s lips twitched.
He closed the door and walked over to the edge of Jiang Yan's bed, sitting down.
"Today... what exactly happened?"
Jiang Yan shrank into the blanket, rolling into a white cocoon.
Then, from within the blanket, he made a muffled sound.
"My dear guest, what are you asking?"
Jian Hou: "…Are you going to die just by showing your head?"
Jiang Yan slowly revealed his head. His dark hair was messy, and his gemstone-like blue eyes looked up at Jian Hou, wide and innocent, as he said, "My dear guest, what are you asking?"
The tone, it really sounds like a real NPC!
Jian Hou reached out to rub Jiang Yan's head, then pinched his delicate, soft cheek, gritting his teeth as he said:
"Ancestor! What do you say?!"
Jiang Yan grimaced as he was pinched.
"I'll say, I'll say, I'll say! Let go, let go!"
Only then did Jian Hou release his grip, crossing his arms and looking down at Jiang Yan from a higher position:
"Honestly, confess."
Jiang Yan rubbed his cheek, which had been pinched red, against the soft velvet bedsheet, then the sound of a notification echoed.
"Clink!"
[Item: Lost Rose]
Golden rose vines instantly bloomed from Jiang Yan's body, enveloping the entire room.
[Item usage status: Exiting the subscript script for five minutes]
Jiang Yan wrapped himself in the blanket, turned over, and sat up. His expression was indifferent as he said to Jian Hou:
"We don't have much time. I'll inject the memory directly into your mind. You might feel a bit dizzy, bear with it."
Jian Hou nodded slightly.
In an instant, countless images flashed through his mind like rose petals. Jian Hou felt like he was riding on a fast-moving roller coaster, his entire brain and heart being jerked up and down.
When he finished seeing all the images, it felt like hours had passed.
However, the system panel in front of him showed that only a little over ten seconds had passed.
Jian Hou was still struggling to recover from the weightlessness and dizziness, staring blankly at Jiang Yan in front of him:
"Yan Yan, what is this?"
It was unclear whether he was asking about the sudden appearance of the memory in his mind, the new divine copy Jiang Yan had obtained, the ten Yu Xiu that had appeared in the mouse hole, or the last thing Yu Xiu had said to Jiang Yan in the hole…
Perhaps, it was all of those things.
Jiang Yan shook his head: "I don't know what this is, but I do know that this should be the key for us to leave here."
Jian Hou was confused: "Didn't they say that we could leave once we've accumulated enough points? If we accumulate enough points, we can make a wish to the main god. Can't the main god fulfill any wish?"
Jiang Yan countered: "If points could really fulfill all wishes, then why are Tao Shi and the others still in the game? They are the top players, their points should have been enough to fulfill their wishes by now, don't you think?"
"Let's assume, even if Tao Shi and Cao Youfeng are still young, they’re new rising stars who just climbed to the top of the game in recent years, and their wish's point requirements are too vast, so they haven’t yet accumulated enough points to fulfill their desires. But..."
"But what?" Jian Hou asked.
"When I had 663 investigate Yu Xiu, I also had him check the top few players and real NPCs in the game," Jiang Yan said.
Jian Hou thought for a moment. "You mean... the four guild leaders?"
"You know about them?" Jiang Yan asked.
"My personal system is quite chatty, it gives me information about basic game knowledge every day, I can almost memorize it all," Jian Hou grumbled.
Jiang Yan continued, "Then you must have noticed that their time in the game is strangely long."
"Aren't they around our age?" Jian Hou said, while pulling up the basic game data he had compiled on the game system. "Strangely long, but only...?"
"200 years?!!"
The numbers before Jian Hou made his eyes widen in shock. "But, isn’t their personal info showing they’re only in their 20s this year?"
"What if they’ve been in the game for those 200 years, and their age has been stuck in their 20s this whole time?" Jiang Yan said.
"This is impossible!" Jian Hou denied. "Players and NPCs can return to the real world after completing a dungeon. Xiao Tao even mentioned that he and the guild leaders, along with other guild leaders and high-ranking members, have a good relationship and often gather to eat together in the real world. How could—"
"But the fact is, those four have at least been in the game for 200 years," Jiang Yan said seriously.
Jian Hou sucked in a cold breath. "Maybe..."
"Think about it," Jiang Yan said, "What kind of wish would make the top players in the game, who’ve spent 200 years, unable to fulfill it?"
"Of course! Maybe their wish is too grand! Something like saving the world, so the point requirements are high! They haven’t accumulated enough points yet, so they’ve been stuck in the game for over 200 years without realizing their wish. That’s why I had 663 investigate the players who have left the game."
"However, that guy said the game only keeps the list of players who successfully completed the game and left within the past 20 years. I had him pull it up, and guess what?"
"The data is...?" Jian Hou asked, looking at him.
"Zero," Jiang Yan answered.
Jian Hou’s eyes instantly widened in disbelief.
"Yes, in the past 20 years, not a single player has left the game," Jiang Yan said, his expression indifferent.
Jian Hou instantly panicked: "So... this game is basically a scam! We can’t actually leave the game! The points we’ve been collecting... are they even useful?!"
Jiang Yan replied seriously: "I don’t know if they’re useful or not. But I’m certain that using points to fulfill wishes and leave the game... it’s probably not as simple as it seems. Or rather, it’s a distant illusion the main god has drawn for all players and real NPCs who enter the game."
"Then what do you mean by this being the only key for us to leave here?" Jian Hou asked.
Jiang Yan answered, "663 said that this [Divine System] is a side quest given to me by the main god."
"Right now, you’re the only one in the game who has it. But everyone else just knows you’ve been [blessed by the gods], that you have an item that can give players buffs. The entire game forum is almost crashing because of you. 254 says this isn’t a miracle, it’s a divine act. I came to find you because of this," Jian Hou said in a grave tone.
"I don’t know what it is either," Jiang Yan replied, shaking his head while still wrapped in the blanket. "But I have a feeling that if completing the personal system’s tasks doesn’t allow us to leave the game, then... completing the main system's tasks might give us the right to negotiate with the main god."
Jian Hou’s eyes shifted, a hint of worry in his voice: "But... why is it only you who has this? Could it be... some sort of conspiracy? You know, two of those guilds are hunting you down."
Jiang Yan chuckled bitterly: "Maybe they’re after me because they know something. Like... they know I have this Divine System? Or maybe they knew I would end up with it? As for where this system came from... I have this feeling it might be related to Yu Xiu."
"Yu Xiu?" Jian Hou exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes," Jiang Yan nodded. "You’ve seen how special that guy is in the game. He... is different from all the system NPCs, real NPCs, and system items. He... is everywhere. Everywhere he goes, it’s him."
"But the system NPCs are all created based on the data of existing players and real NPCs, aren’t they?" Jian Hou said. "Maybe... it’s because Yu Xiu is so good-looking? That’s why the main system especially likes to model system NPCs after his face?"
"Is that what you think?" Jiang Yan looked at his friend seriously. "You saw the memories I injected into your mind just now. Do you still think Yu Xiu is just a system NPC?"
Jian Hou fell silent.
The last memory Jiang Yan had injected into his mind from the small town—where Yu Xiu whispered into his ear, softly telling him the final key to the town’s task...
Although Jian Hou had only completed one dungeon in the game, he understood that this absolutely couldn’t be the behavior of a system NPC.
"But, isn't Yu Xiu..." Jian Hou pointed at Jiang Yan's abdomen, his face filled with confusion. "Didn't Yu Xiu turn into that strange black, unidentified creature in the game? Isn't part of him now residing inside your body?"
His husband had transformed into an alien species, dwelling within his own body.
Sometimes, Jian Hou even admired Jiang Yan's ability to accept such a situation. He also admired himself. Perhaps that was why he could be friends with both of them.
"Yes, he's here."
Jiang Yan reached beneath his robe and pulled out a soft black tentacle, adorned with green eyeballs, holding it up in front of Jian Hou before letting it slip back under the blanket, returning to the folds of his robe. "But, he seems to be everywhere."
"So, what do you mean...?" Jian Hou asked, still puzzled.
Jiang Yan explained, "I was thinking, what if Yu Xiu got stuck in some kind of bug in the game? Or, after entering the game, during his battle of wits with the main god, he discovered a flaw in the main system? What if he became a bug in the game?"
"The main system and the main god couldn't fix the bug that Yu Xiu became, so they erased all the data regarding Yu Xiu's entry into the game and had to leave him wandering through various dungeons as a system NPC."
"And maybe... the reason we’re both here... is because Yu Xiu wanted to leave the game, so he dragged us in to help him?" Jiang Yan’s gaze darkened. "After all... the only friends he has in this world are you and me."
At first, when Jian Hou heard that Yu Xiu might have dragged them into this cursed game, anger and resentment surged in his chest. What a sick joke! Why drag him and Jiang Yan into such a dangerous and terrifying game?
But hearing Jiang Yan's words, "The only friends Yu Xiu has in this world are you and me," Jian Hou’s heart softened instantly.
He thought of poor Yu Xiu, so young, orphaned... He had no family in this world, and aside from Jiang Yan and Jian Hou, he had no friends.
In fact, besides them, the couple had no one else either.
With that thought, the anger and resentment in Jian Hou's heart vanished in an instant. A sense of mission and heroism began to rise within him.
Although at this moment, among the three of them—Yu Xiu, Jiang Yan, and Jian Hou—Yu Xiu was like a bug, wandering through various corners of the dungeon; Jiang Yan carried a bug system and items on his body, becoming something like a "game virus" in the eyes of all players and NPCs; and Jian Hou himself was just an ordinary new player without even an item still,
Jian Hou reached out and gently rubbed Jiang Yan's head under the blanket, reassuring him firmly, " Don't worry! We will get out, and we will definitely save Yu Xiu."
Jiang Yan sniffled, nodded, and said, moved, "Old Jian, you're really amazing. No wonder you always wanted to be Ultraman when you were little!"
Jian Hou’s expression grew serious."Thank you, world. It seems like I can finally fulfill my lifelong wish. You continue."
Jiang Yan wrapped the blanket more tightly around himself and said,"I can't help but wonder if this 'Divinity System' was actually given to me by Yu Xiu. Maybe if we complete the tasks in this system, we can negotiate with the main god, or maybe even truly fulfill our wishes, and leave this game."
"Huh? Didn’t you just say that your personal system told you that this was given to you by the main god?" Jian Hou asked, puzzled.
"Yes. That's what my personal system says," Jiang Yan replied.
"But why would the main god give me this? I don’t even know him!"
Jian Hou said, "The entire server is curious about that. The game forums are all speculating wildly about your relationship with the main god."
Jiang Yan nodded.
"The only connection between me and the main god is Yu Xiu."
"So, I’m thinking, what if this system was actually something Yu Xiu found in a previous game, a bug in the main system, and gave it to me? Maybe if we finish the system’s tasks, we’ll be able to leave."
Jian Hou thought for a moment, "What you're saying... kind of makes sense."
Jiang Yan’s tone turned serious."The guild leaders of the Four Great Guilds must know something about this. Maybe the reason they want to kill me isn’t because of the things on me now, but because of-"
"You're saying because of Yu Xiu?" Jian Hou interjected.
"Yes. This is the most logical explanation I can think of," Jiang Yan answered.
Jian Hou pondered for a moment then said,"But I still feel like something’s off. Like... why did Yu Xiu even enter this game? What did he want to achieve? To me, he doesn’t seem to care about anything except you... Residual limbs? Specimens?"
"If his wish was to remarry you, wouldn’t he just come back and pursue you directly? No need to even pursue you! Just a bouquet of flowers and you two could immediately head to the civil affairs bureau! You clearly love him deeply!"
At these words, Jiang Yan’s long lashes fluttered slightly.
"No..."
Jian Hou rolled his eyes at Jiang Yan, not bothering to argue. Now wasn’t the time to discuss the emotional dynamics between the two of them. He continued, "First, let’s rule out that his wish for entering the game was to remarry you. So, what could his wish be, to the point that he needed to enter such a dangerous game to achieve it? Surely, he doesn’t want to kill everyone in the world and turn all the living beings into specimens in his collection, right?"
"Of course not," Jiang Yan quickly denied.
"Then why would Yu Xiu enter this game?" Jian Hou pressed.
"Maybe... like the new players in this dungeon, he was mysteriously pulled into the game?" Jiang Yan suggested.
"But 254 said you were the first human to be pulled into the game without making a wish," Jian Hou replied.
"The main system erased all information about Yu Xiu," Jiang Yan said.
"But people can’t forget him!" Jian Hou said seriously. "If the system erased all memories of Yu Xiu as a player or NPC, then how do you explain why Xiao Tao and Xiao Cao have no impression of him at all?"
"Well, if Yu Xiu, as you said, discovered a bug in the main system or with the main god, causing him to become what he is now, then he must have been a major figure in the game back then, just like you are now! I’m afraid he might have used a code name, like the spades K, but his face... anyone who has seen it would never forget it."
Jian Hou shrugged, adding, "If the main god or system erased everyone's memory, then your logic about the Four Great Guild leaders wanting to assassinate you because of Yu Xiu doesn’t hold up. And even if the main god or system erased everyone's memory... it doesn’t apply to the four players who’ve been in the game for two hundred years. But..."
"But what?" Jiang Yan asked.
Jian Hou’s expression grew more serious. "But what if I'm saying, what if..."
He paused before continuing,"What if Yu Xiu actually belonged to this game from the beginning?"
Drip.
Jian Hou's words were like a stone thrown into still water, and Jiang Yan’s calm thoughts were disrupted by ripples of realization.
He blinked. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, what if Yu Xiu originally came from this game? What if he belonged to this game from the start?" Jian Hou said seriously. "That would make more sense, wouldn't it? In fact, it’s even more logical, right?"
Outside the room, the sound of wheels rolling over the floor echoed, likely from a giant’s servant pushing a cart.
The "Lost Rose" item had a five-minute window for players to leave the dungeon, but since he and Jian Hou had been talking for much longer, the time limit had definitely been exceeded. Strangely, though, no warning from the main system had yet sounded.
Jian Hou thought for a moment and then said,"Didn’t you ever feel that guy didn’t seem like a regular person? Or don’t you think this situation feels strangely familiar now?"
Jiang Yan remained silent.
"Back in school, it was the same as now," Jian Hou said. "Someone as striking and eye-catching as Yu Xiu, yet after your first meeting, when we tried to find out more about him, it was as if no one had ever seen him or knew who he was."
"Now, in this world, his only friends are you and me."
"Back then, the only people he was connected to in this world were his parents. He didn’t even have any relatives, familiar neighbors, or close classmates! When you two got your marriage certificate and held a reception, the number of his friends and family attending was exactly zero."
"It seems like… after his parents died in that car accident, his connection to this world shifted from his parents to you and me."
"And after he divorced you, he completely disappeared. For that half-year, it was as if he never even existed in this world. And now, he’s reappeared in this bizarre game in this strange form."
"If we follow what you just said.. that Yu Xiu himself is a part of the game. It actually… makes sense, doesn’t it?"
Jiang Yan didn’t reply. He remained curled up in the blanket like a triangular rice ball, only his head peeking out.
There was little expression on his face, as usual.
But Jian Hou could see the storm of emotions raging behind those crystal-clear blue eyes.
Outside, footsteps grew noisier in the hallway. It sounded like the servants were busy with something.
Jian Hou reached out and gently cupped Jiang Yan’s face, his expression serious.
"Yan Yan, if Yu Xiu is truly part of this game, what are we going to do?"
Jiang Yan’s long lashes trembled like butterfly wings. He was silent for a moment before he slowly said,"I don’t know. All I know is that he’s here in this game, wanting us to take him back with us."
"And all I know is… I want to go back too… with you and with him."
Golden rose vines climbed luxuriously across the room, their scarlet petals falling silently from the air.
Jian Hou held his friend's face, staring deeply into those blue eyes. After a long moment, he slowly smiled and said,"Yan Yan, you have a wish now."
Jiang Yan’s long lashes quivered.
A crystal-clear tear slid from the corner of Jiang Yan's eye, tracing along his delicate chin before falling onto the goose feather blanket covering his chest. His blue eyes began to grow confused.
He couldn’t understand why he was crying.
He clearly didn’t feel sad at all, nor was there any emotional fluctuation. His heart and soul were calm, just as they were during most of his life.
Why… was he crying?
Jian Hou wiped the tear streaks from his face and said firmly, "Then let’s bring him back!"
"Even if all our speculations from beginning to end are completely wrong, even if Yu Xiu really is just a part of this game, even if in the future, we face countless moments where we’re only 0.01 seconds away from death"
"We must leave! And we must bring Yu Xiu with us!"
Jian Hou’s gaze was unwavering, as resolute as a ray of light cutting through dense fog.
Jiang Yan stared at him in a daze.
At last, he felt the stirring of his emotions. A warm current flowed out from his heart, spreading through every inch of his blood vessels, leaving him both slightly warm and faintly dazed.
He sniffled and muttered, "Old Jian… you’re so good."
Jian Hou smugly placed his hands on his hips, standing by the bedside as he laughed heartily at the rice-ball-shaped Jiang Yan wrapped in the blanket, "Your Jian-ge has been destined to be a giant of light since childhood!"
Jiang Yan: "…"
After making his chΕ«nibyΕ declaration, Jian Hou sat back down at the bedside, his face turning serious again as he said, "But regardless of whether our speculations are right or wrong, there’s one thing I think you’re definitely correct about and that’s completing your [Divine Persona System] mission."
Jiang Yan nodded slightly, "Gather enough followers, become a god."
"Become a god," Jian Hou chuckled softly and sighed, "Sounds like an incredibly difficult task."
Jiang Yan stared at the interface of his personal system, specifically the [Divine Persona System] panel:
[Divine Persona Upgrade System: S]
[Judgment Mission Completion Progress: 20%]
[Number of Rescued Believers in Dungeons: 7]
[Faith Accumulation: 7%]
[Divinity Value Accumulation: +2%]
[Mission Completion Progress: 10%]
[Mission Hint: Piece together the kaleidoscope of Believer Lu Wei's memories, complete their judgment, and earn Faith and Divinity Value!]
He remarked, "At the current 10% progress rate, it’s not bad, right?"
"You're already at 10% progress??" Jian Hou was somewhat shocked.
"This game is far less rigorous than we imagined! It’s riddled with bugs! For example, we’ve been talking for at least two hours now, yet the time display in my system’s inventory claims only four minutes have passed!" Jiang Yan, still wrapped in the blanket, deadpanned.
"What?!"
Jian Hou belatedly realized the issue. Their conversation had clearly exceeded the time limit specified by [The Lost Rose].
Jiang Yan let out a cold laugh, "Like earlier in the dungeon, even the countdown timer’s format seemed off! The time for one minute or one second didn’t match actual time at all... If this were a real online game, players would be roasting it to death by now! A broken game with an inaccurate timeline!"
"Time..."
Jian Hou suddenly seemed to think of something. He began rummaging through his pockets while saying to Jiang Yan, "Could it have something to do with this?"
"What?" Jiang Yan asked.
Finally, Jian Hou pulled out a golden, intricately designed pocket watch adorned with a delicate gold chain.
He opened the watch, revealing not a typical clock face, but a series of concentric spirals resembling swirling nebulae in the universe. A tiny, glowing dot was slowly moving along one of the spirals.
"It can speed up or slow down time. Back in that town, when I got nervous, I accidentally touched it while fumbling in my pocket and seemed to slow it down.
"And just now, when you were dumping memories into my head, I got nervous again and accidentally touched it, slowing it down once more.
"But it seems like pressing pause can restore things to normal."
As he spoke, Jian Hou gently pressed the button on the side of the watch’s face.
"Ding!"
The timer in Jiang Yan's inventory interface instantly counted down to [00:00].
Swish!
The golden vines around them disappeared in an instant, and the vibrant red rose petals withered and scattered across the room in dried fragments.
Jiang Yan: "..."
Jian Hou: "..."
[It ended?? What were they even talking about??]
[Being able to escape a dungeon for 5 minutes this item is absolutely overpowered!!]
[Wait, what’s that in Jian Hou’s hand??]
"So… it really was because of this thing?" Jian Hou curiously studied the pocket watch in his hand.
The next second, the voice of the main system echoed in midair:
"Ding!"
[Congratulations, Player Jian Hou, for obtaining the item: Star-Time.]
[Item Level: A.]
[What??!!]
[Huh??? What the hell just happened??]
[An A-level item?? A-level?!! When did it drop?!]
Players on the forums stared, dumbfounded, at this unexpected turn of events.
The system's voice continued,
[Item Abilities]
1. Usable once per dungeon, allowing time manipulation within a specific spatial range. Upon first acquisition, enjoy one complimentary use!
2. In ordinary circumstances, the item can be wielded as a flail weapon!
Jian Hou: "A flail…?"
Jiang Yan: "...Wow!"
Before the two could process what had just happened, someone suddenly knocked on the door.
Knock-knock-knock.
“Your Highness, it seems your friend have encountered… some trouble.”